(Suspended) Strike News - Addendum

Yesterday, we posted about an offer by a UAW local that seemed to be off-script at Santa Cruz and a court hearing regarding the suspended student-worker strike. It appears from a statement tweeted and issued by UC labor relations that a) the hearing was cancelled because the strike officially ended yesterday, and b) UC is continuing to pursue its lawsuit against the union for breach of contract, i.e., striking while under a no-strike clause.* 

This posting seems to be part of the new "professionalism" in UC labor relations policy about which we have also previously posted.** See below for yesterday's notice by UC:

UAW strike formally ends; breach of contract case will continue in Superior Court

UC Office of the President June 27, 2024

The International Union, United Automobile, Aerospace and Agricultural Implement Workers of America (UAW) agreed to extend the temporary restraining order that ended the strike that began last month. The University of California’s breach of contract case against UAW is ongoing.

Strike Officially Over: Both parties agreed to extend a temporary restraining order (TRO) through June 30. Since UAW had only authorized the strike through June 30, this extension signifies a formal end to the strike. In light of this agreement, the hearing on the preliminary injunction that was previously scheduled for June 27 is no longer necessary. 

Contract Dispute Continues: The underlying lawsuit regarding the breach of contract will proceed in Superior Court. The next hearing on the case will be on Nov. 8.

Unfair Labor Practice Charges Under Review: Separate unfair labor practice (ULP) charges filed by both the University and the UAW related to activities in May and the UAW’s strike will continue to be reviewed by the Public Employment Relations Board (PERB).

“While we are relieved this strike is over, we continue to seek clarity that our no-strike clauses are enforceable and that we can rely on our contracts to provide labor peace through the term of our agreements, supporting UC’s ability to provide critical academic and research services to our community,” said Missy Matella, associate vice president of Systemwide Employee and Labor Relations.

Note that the next court hearing is a long way off: November 8th. And its not clear that PERB is in any rush to make decisions - which themselves can be appealed. So there is time for everyone to step back, take a deep breath, and decide whether what we have called "legalism" in the past - reliance on courts and PERB to resolve issues - is the best way to conduct a relationship.

We'll say more about all of this in subsequent posts. But UC could begin asking itself what would actually be accomplished even if PERB were ultimately to provide favorable rulings for UC's position and, even if months from now, there is a court decision in UC's favor, none of which is guaranteed. UAW needs to think about the difference between organizing a union and managing the resulting organization thereafter. While it's challenging to run a democratic entity with lots of voices, too many instances of folks going off script and taking actions suggest that there are problems in managing the organization that haven't yet been addressed. Both sides need to think about what the landscape looks like from the other side. Taking that perspective may be the toughest - but most necessary - challenge to face.

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*https://x.com/uc_newsroom/status/1806388180389621867; https://www.universityofcalifornia.edu/press-room/uaw-strike-formally-ends-breach-contract-case-will-continue-superior-court.

**https://uclafacultyassociation.blogspot.com/2024/06/ucs-new-approach-to-labor-relations.html.